Uncle Josef Will You Play With Me
by protejerinnocencia
Summary: Mick and Beth leave for an evening out and Josef is in charge of watching Logan. See what happens when a 400 year old vampire and a 5 year old butt heads.


Uncle Josef Will You Play With Me

**Uncle Josef Will You Play With Me**

A knock resounded on the apartment door. A set of feet skittered towards the door. As best he could, five-year-old Logan pulled the door open to reveal Josef standing on the other side.

"Uncle Josef!" the boy squealed, immediately tugging on the man's sleeve to lead him in. His excitement drew both Mick and Beth from upstairs.

"Hi Josef," Beth greeted, giving him a quick hug as she tried to put in an earring.

"Thanks for doing this for us," Mick added. Josef nodded and led Mick into the living room area. Logan was distracted by Beth's frustration with her jewelry.

"Now…what exactly does this gig entail…because you know…I don't really do kids," Josef said in a hushed voice. Mick gave him a smile and clapped him on the shoulder.

"It's not hard. He's already eaten dinner. He'll need a snack around eight. Make sure he drinks a glass of blood with it. He stays up until about midnight and then lights out," Mick explained.

"Midnight? Isn't that a bit early for a vamp?" Josef questioned.

"Josef, he's five. He has school in the morning."

"Right…the whole half mortal thing. Of course," he muttered. Beth approached them.

"Are we ready? We're going to be late for the show," she said, looping her arm through Mick's.

"Mommy!" Logan chirped, wrapping his arms around her waste.

"You're going to be for Uncle Josef, right?" she said, bending down to give him a firm hug.

"Yes, Mommy," he answered.

"Good," she said, giving him a kiss on the top of the head.

"Say goodnight to Daddy before we go," she told him. Logan went hurdling towards Mick. Mick managed to scoop the boy up before he got far.

"You listen to Uncle Josef. No arguing," Mick said, tickling to boy's bare stomach as he hung upside down.

"Ok…Daddy it tickles!" Logan giggled. Mick set the boy down and grabbed his coat.

"We should be back no later than one," Mick said. With that, he and Beth disappeared out the door. Josef looked down at the boy who was smiling broadly up at him. Josef gave him a small smile before clearing his throat.

"Uncle Josef, will you play with me?" Logan asked, starting to jump up and down.

"Uh…sure," Josef answered, slowly bending down to the boy's eye level. Logan sprinted around the room at vampiric speeds, gathering trucks, cars and building blocks.

"We have to build a castle."

"A castle?" Josef looked rather skeptically at the blocks.

"Duh. Everybody has a castle," Logan answered, starting to connect blocks together. Josef reached out and picked up a block, examining it for a minute before attaching it.

"That one has to be bigger," Logan instructed a short time later. They'd constructed four walls of varying height. It looked very lopsided.

"Bigger. Right," Josef muttered and began to stack more blocks. Ten minutes later, they'd constructed the castle to Logan's satisfaction. He began to pick and choose cars and stick them inside.

"Why are we putting the cars inside?" Josef asked.

"Because they go in there. It protects them," the boy replied, standing up. He started walking towards the kitchen.

"Whoah, kid. Where are you going?" Josef called.

"We need a moat!" Logan called back.

"Moat?" Logan returned with a glass full of water. He started to tip it over when Josef reached over and grabbed.

"I don't think so. Mommy and Daddy wouldn't be happy if you made a moat out of the carpet," Josef said, setting the boy on the couch.

"But it's a castle. It needs a moat," Logan protested, trying to get up. Josef held him firmly by the shoulder.

"Give me the cup," Josef ordered.

"No!" Logan screamed and managed to get free. He dumped the water on the ground and took off. Josef looked at the spill and then in the direction that Logan went.

"Logan, I'm not playing around," he called, walking away from the stain. He checked in Mick's office but found nothing. He headed upstairs and began checking every room on the hall. He finally reached Mick and Beth's room. He pushed the door open and could see a set of legs crouching behind the opposite side of the bed.

"Come on out," Josef called.

"No," Logan answered. Josef shook his head. In a stride or two, he had rounded the bed and picked the boy up.

"Would Mommy and Daddy let you make a moat?" Josef asked sternly. Logan slowly shook his head.

"Ok. Come on, we need to clean it up." He ushered the boy downstairs and they grabbed a roll of paper towels.

"I'm hungry," Logan announced some time later. Josef eyed the clock. It was a little after eight. They gathered the wet paper towels and headed back to the kitchen.

"What do you usually have for a snack?" Josef asked, opening the fridge to find an already poured glass of blood.

"Uh…mac and cheese." Josef raised a quizzical eyebrow at him.

"Why don't we try something lighter than that," Josef suggested but Logan shook his head.

"Mommy said its ok. I asked her."

"I'm 400 years old, kid. I don't cook," Josef said matter-of-factly.

"But Mommy cooks."

"Well Mommy's mortal."

"Daddy cooks too."

"How about we find something that doesn't require cooking," Josef said and began hunting through the cabinets.

"Can I have cereal?" Logan piped up.

"Sure," Josef mumbled, happening upon the cabinet with cereal in it.

"Which one?"

"Cheerios." Josef pulled out the yellow box and poured some into the bowl. After pouring milk in, he set it at the table and helped Logan up.

"Enjoy."

"You want some?" Logan offered. Josef shook his head.

"Can't. Vampires don't eat, remember." Logan looked confused for a minute but then nodded.

"Why don't you have a wife?" Logan blurted. Josef gave an uneasy laugh.

"I'm not the settling down type, kiddo. It's a little too…well it's complicated," Josef answered as best he could. Logan seemed to accept the explanation and turned his attention back to his cereal.

The next few hours seemed to fly by. Logan had twisted Josef's arm into letting him watch some TV but it made the night at least bearable. Around eleven thirty, Josef picked up the remote and turned the TV off.

"Uncle Josef…it's not bed time yet," Logan protested.

"Well you have school tomorrow…that's what Daddy said. Wouldn't want to fall asleep during school."

"I don't want to go to bed," Logan said with a pout. Josef cleared his throat.

"I'm in charge tonight. I say it's time for bed. Come on. More sleep never hurt anyone." Reluctantly Logan stood up and trudged upstairs, making it very clear that he was not happy.

Getting him ready for bed proved to be even harder than Josef had anticipated. He had to tackle Logan several times to get him into the bathroom to brush his teeth.

"Will you read me a story?" Logan asked as Josef led him back into his room.

"Yeah, sure. Why not," Josef sighed, sitting down in the rocking chair by Logan's freezer.

"In you go," he said, watching the boy climb in.

"That one, please," Logan said, pointing to the book on the night stand; _The Little Engine That Could_.

A short time later, Josef had finished the story and Logan's eyes were dropping. Josef smiled down at the boy and ruffled his hair before shutting the top to the freezer. He shut the door to the room and headed downstairs. He started to wash the empty glass and bowl when the front door opened and Mick and Beth walked in.

"You're home early," Josef commented.

"Show got out early," Beth answered.

"How was he?" Mick asked.

"Oh well…he wanted to build a moat for his castle," Josef answered.

"A moat?" Beth asked. Josef smiled to himself and nodded.

"He's asleep now," he added and put the bowl and glass in the dish washer. Beth squeezed his hand and walked by, leaving he and Mick alone.

"Thanks again for watching him," Mick said.

"Yeah, sure. He's my godson after all. But if you don't mind, I have a date with a pretty redhead," Josef replied, flashing his fangs as he walked out the door.


End file.
